Spokane is the principal city of eastern Washington. It is a very active place, with electric cars, electric lights, cable cars, elevators, etc., though it is not at all peculiar in these respects, as nearly all progressive western towns have the same, and their hotels rank with the finest in the leading cities of the world. The Spokane River and Falls are of great beauty and utility.

Idaho is essentially different from the States we have been considering in many important particulars. It has formed successively a part of Ore

gon, Washington, Utah and Nebraska. Although explored by Lewis and Clark on their famous expedition, but little was known of it until 1852, when gold was discovered near the northern boundary. On July 3, 1890, Idaho entered the Union, being the forty-third State in the order of admission. The name Idaho is said to mean "Light of the Mountains."

Its mountain system is peculiar. The Salmon River range in the cen

tral part of the State is one of the most picturesque in America and of itself covers an area as large as New Jersey. Streams radiate to nearly every point from their sources in this great central range, yet they all flow into the Snake River and thence into the Columbia. The crests and summits of many of these mountains rise from 10,000 to 13,000 feet above the level of the sea.

One of the most remarkable features of Idaho is the vast lava bed which covers a large area of that part of the State on the east and south along the course of the Snake River. This is the principal river, and drains all the State except the most northern and the southeastern portions. The Shoshone Falls of this river are second only to those of Niagara, the Yellowstone and the Yosemite. The stream here is six hundred feet wide, and above the falls it is divided by five islands into six parts. Then, after flowing four hundred yards further, it passes in one unbroken sheet over a precipice, making a descent of two hundred and twenty-five feet.

Forests abound in the north. There is but little rainfall in the southern part of the State, but toward the center there is a heavy snowfall for several months in the year. The climate is dependent upon the elevation, and varies from a dry area of almost torrid heat along the Snake River and the foot-hills to the cold of the mountain peaks where the snow lies frequently through the summer, and ice forms nearly every night. Even in winter the ice and snow are often rapidly melted by the Chinook winds blowing from the Pacific Coast.

The country is not well adapted to agriculture, yet on both sides of the Snake River irrigation has produced the same results that it has in Utah. In the aggregate the grazing lands form a considerable tract, but these lands are widely scattered. There are many rich mines in the State, but as yet they have not been fully developed. The Mormon Church is strong in Idaho, but as polygamy is prohibited by law, about 3,000 Mormons are practically disfranchised. The largest town is Boisé City, which in 1890 contained about 3,300 people.

IDEAS OF AMERICAN

CLAIMS OF THE

CHAPTER XXX.

A CHAPTER OUT OF EARLY HISTORY.

COLUMBIA -
EARLY

STATESMEN FIFTY YEARS AGO-DISCOVERY OF THE
UNITED STATES ΤΟ THE NORTHWEST TERRITORY-THE
MISSIONS-DR. WHITMAN AND MR. SPALDING-THE FIRST OVERLAND JOURNEY-
THE OLD WAGON-GENERAL LOVEJOY RESULT IN WASHINGTON
TEACHING OF THE HUDSON BAY COMPANY- THE
PENDING TREATY-THE RETURN JOURNEY OF WHITMAN
AND LOVEJOY-A CHANGE OF VIEW IN WASHING-
TON-THE LESSON OF THE OLD WAGON-

OF THE

WORK AND DEATH OF DR. WHITMAN.

N our day, when the great northwestern part of our country with its vast resources is so well known and so thoroughly appreciated, it seems almost incredible that only fifty years ago so little was known of that region that a man like Daniel Webster was willing to believe it a "sandy desert." That this great country which now comprises the States of Washington, Oregon and Idaho is not to-day part of the British possessions is largely due to the unselfish exertions of Dr. Marcus Whitman, a missionary sent out to that part of the United States by the American Board of Missions in 1836.

That this country, which was then known as Oregon, belonged rightfully to the United States there can be no shadow of doubt. Captain Robert Gray of Boston discovered the Columbia River in 1792 and gave the name of his good ship to that beautiful and majestic Hudson of the West. The English navigator, Vancouver, was informed of its existence by Captain Gray before he ever entered its waters. The second claim of the United States was based on the Louisiana purchase. This territory had been ceded by France to Spain in 1762, re-ceded to France in 1800, and sold by the latter country to the United States in 1803 "with all its rights and appurtenances as fully and in the same manner as they were acquired by the French.republic." Although there was some doubt whether France could rightfully claim the territory along the Pacific Coast as far north as the parallel of forty-nine degrees, it was Spain who disputed her claim, and not England.

A third claim of the United States was based on the explorations of Lewis and Clark, who were sent out by Jefferson in 1803, and who followed the Columbia from its headwaters to its mouth. A fourth claim was based on the actual settlement made at Astoria in.1811. A fifth was the treaty of the United States with Spain in 1818, when Spain relinquished any and all claims to the territory in dispute to the United States. The sixth and last claim was the treaty with

Mexico in 1828, by which the United States acquired all interests in the territory in question that had been claimed by Mexico.

When the appeal of the Flat Head Indians of the Northwest was made known to the people in the eastern part of the United States, it touched a responsive chord and stirred the church to unusual activity. The Methodists sent out the Lees in 1834, and the American Board tried to get the right men to send with them, but were unable to do so until 1835, when they sent out Dr. Marcus Whitman and the Rev. Samuel Parker upon a trip of discovery. On reaching Green River, Whitman and Mr. Parker met large bodies of Indians, who endeavored to induce them to remain, and it was decided that Dr. Whitman should return to the East, and, after making the necessary arrangements, snould return the following

year.

Dr.

After hearing Dr. Whitman's report the American Board at once decided to occupy the field. He had for a long time been engaged to marry Miss Narcissa Prentice of Prattsburgh, New York, who was as enthusiastic with respect to work among the Indians as Dr. Whitman himself. The Board did not consider it expedient to send the young couple alone, so the day of the wedding was deferred while search was being made for suitable persons to accompany them. The Rev. H. H. Spalding and his wife, who had been recently married, were at length induced to go. Then, all other necessary arrangements having been made, Dr. Whitman and Miss Prentice

were married, and the four young people started on one of the most formidable wedding journeys ever undertaken. The company was composed of Dr. and Mrs. Whitman, Mr. and Mrs. Spalding, H. H. Gray, two teamsters and two Indian boys who had accompanied Dr. Whitman on his return from the West.

The American Fur Company was sending out a large expedition to Ore

were reduced to a diet of dried buffalo meat and tea.

In spite of all drawbacks and efforts to persuade him to leave it behind, Dr. Whitman persisted in hauling along the wagon which afterward had so much influence on the destiny of that country. It was always getting stuck in the creeks and rivers and being upset on the steep mountain sides, and made it necessary for him to walk over all the most difficult portions of the way. Even his wife did not sympathize with him in this effort, but with undaunted courage he persisted, realizing the importance of getting it through.

On reaching the Green River they were met by the Cayuse and Nez Percé Indians, who were awaiting the return of Dr. Whitman and the boys who had left them the year before. The Indians were delighted to see